Aces High Bulletin Board

General Forums => Aircraft and Vehicles => Topic started by: NormH3 on January 07, 2011, 05:46:51 AM

Title: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: NormH3 on January 07, 2011, 05:46:51 AM
New guy here..been reading and learning. Really impressed with the quality of the simulation. I'm a bit of a stickler for realism and because of that use a CH yoke to fly the P38. The other reason is that I have a bit of arthritus in my hands and joysticks become uncomfortable to use after a time. Does anyone know if there is a glaring disadvantage to using the yoke as opposed to a joystick? I have been flying Flight Sims for years and know how to handle an aircraft, just not so well in a combat situation. Thanks in advance.

-Norm
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: IrishOne on January 07, 2011, 07:56:03 AM
ifs its comfortable for u, use it.   we have some excellent sticks who still rock the mouse.   if the yoke is the only comfortable way for you to fly, rock the yoke  :rock
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: B4Buster on January 07, 2011, 11:18:52 AM
I know one of the SAPP guys uses a yoke. I forgot who it was though...obie or mensa  possibly? Hopefully whomever I am thinking of chimes in. I don't think it would be the deciding factor in whether you win or lose a fight, though.
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: Soulyss on January 07, 2011, 12:14:11 PM
The only potential disadvantage I could see is that the buttons and controls on a yoke is spread across both hands, whereas on a traditional Joystick you would have them all within reach of one hand.  I'm thinking of the CH yoke vs. Fighterstick specifically here. If you were to add a seperate throttle you'd get more buttons than you could shake a stick at and probably be more efficient. 

With the single yoke if you needed to access a key that wasn't on the yoke itself you'd potentially have to move your hand to the keyboard and back several times during a fight.

Then again if you laid out the buttons carefully it may be a non-issue, and I would think the increased comfort would more than make up for it. 

Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: Ack-Ack on January 07, 2011, 12:20:23 PM
Using a yoke wouldn't put you at any disadvantage against someone that was using a normal joystick.  A long time ago I used to use the old CH analog yoke from time to time to fly the P-38 in Air Warrior and it never put me at a disadvantage.

ack-ack
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: NormH3 on January 07, 2011, 12:40:40 PM
The only potential disadvantage I could see is that the buttons and controls on a yoke is spread across both hands, whereas on a traditional Joystick you would have them all within reach of one hand.  I'm thinking of the CH yoke vs. Fighterstick specifically here. If you were to add a seperate throttle you'd get more buttons than you could shake a stick at and probably be more efficient. 

With the single yoke if you needed to access a key that wasn't on the yoke itself you'd potentially have to move your hand to the keyboard and back several times during a fight.

Then again if you laid out the buttons carefully it may be a non-issue, and I would think the increased comfort would more than make up for it. 



Actually I have a Saitek Throttle quadrant that I haven't attempted to mate with the pit yet and another on the way (I fly Douglas propliners Connies and Convairs in my other aviation life). Not sure how easy/hard it will be to interface everything to AH as the CH already has a quadrant built in. Those will probably not be used if I am succesful with the two Saiteks. The keyboard wil most likely be mounted abve the windscreen (read monitor) as I am tired of hunting for keys even while flying commercial. The only other thing I need is a nice comfy chair.
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: cactuskooler on January 07, 2011, 03:06:30 PM
They used them to good effect in real life. I can't think of any reason why a yoke wouldn't work here. If there's any disadvantages I bet they would be made up for by immersion. :airplane:
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: Raptor on January 07, 2011, 03:35:20 PM
If it makes you feel better, I use a mouse and keyboard!
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: The Fugitive on January 07, 2011, 03:46:15 PM
I had read some place that the reactions of a yoke are not as quick/tight as a joystick. The yoke is made more for flying commercial type airplanes and the joystick more for fighters. From what I understand the "throw" in the yoke axis is much bigger than the stick so you loose time.

On the other hand if Ak-Ak didn't see much of a differance there most likely isn't one. Of course we are talking about Ak-Aks memory here.... he is a bit  :old:
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: Ack-Ack on January 07, 2011, 03:53:49 PM


On the other hand if Ak-Ak didn't see much of a differance there most likely isn't one. Of course we are talking about Ak-Aks memory here.... he is a bit  :old:

 :rofl

The only issue I had when using the yoke was it took me a few days to get used to the button and throttle placements.  The main reason I ended not using it as my main controllers is that this was the old CH Virtual Pilot Pro and it didn't have all that many buttons on it compared to my CH Jane's Combat Stick and it was too awkward to use it with the Pro Throttle.  Flying wise, no difference between using the stick once you got used to the throttle placement and it did increase the immersion factor ten fold.

ack-ack
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: katanaso on January 07, 2011, 04:47:11 PM
:rofl

The only issue I had when using the yoke was it took me a few days to get used to the button and throttle placements.  The main reason I ended not using it as my main controllers is that this was the old CH Virtual Pilot Pro and it didn't have all that many buttons on it compared to my CH Jane's Combat Stick and it was too awkward to use it with the Pro Throttle.  Flying wise, no difference between using the stick once you got used to the throttle placement and it did increase the immersion factor ten fold.

ack-ack

Did it change the way you flew the 38? 

Pushing and pulling for elevators, and actually turning a wheel for the ailerons, as opposed to how we just manipulate a stick so easily?

mir

Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: Ack-Ack on January 07, 2011, 05:34:50 PM
Did it change the way you flew the 38? 

Pushing and pulling for elevators, and actually turning a wheel for the ailerons, as opposed to how we just manipulate a stick so easily?

mir



I actually felt it was more intuitive using the yoke than a stick.  It felt like I was able "feel" the maneuvers I was doing better than with a stick if that makes any sense.

ack-ack
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: katanaso on January 07, 2011, 07:14:37 PM
I actually felt it was more intuitive using the yoke than a stick.  It felt like I was able "feel" the maneuvers I was doing better than with a stick if that makes any sense.

ack-ack

Yeah, it does.  It would be tempting to try it for that immersion factor.  Pretty cool.  Thanks. :)

mir
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: FLS on January 07, 2011, 10:34:57 PM
Actually I have a Saitek Throttle quadrant that I haven't attempted to mate with the pit yet and another on the way (I fly Douglas propliners Connies and Convairs in my other aviation life). Not sure how easy/hard it will be to interface everything to AH as the CH already has a quadrant built in. Those will probably not be used if I am succesful with the two Saiteks. The keyboard wil most likely be mounted abve the windscreen (read monitor) as I am tired of hunting for keys even while flying commercial. The only other thing I need is a nice comfy chair.

AH will let you use 2 Saitek quadrants along with the yoke. If you use the Saiteks for engine/prop/trim control you can use the yoke quadrant for other analog controls like view zoom.

I think the yoke is an advantage since it's not spring centered. A stick is faster but since AH limits your virtual controller speed a yoke really doesn't have any disadvantages.

Be sure to turn off the stall limiter and if you prefer to manually trim set the combat trim to off by default, you can still toggle it on and off.
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: oboe on January 08, 2011, 07:06:04 AM
I never did take the plunge and try a control yoke.   But it's always intrigued me and I hope you post your experience with it.
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: NormH3 on January 08, 2011, 08:10:57 AM
i like the way the yoke handles. Response seems immediate. I dont have many kills, and am currently fodder for just about everyone out there. Just trying to figure out a good way to program all the butons. Trying to use the keyboard as little as possible. I have a Logitech Extreme 3D pro, but as mentioned is a little rough on the hands. if I could figure a way to mount it lower and centered, I might be able to use for single engine aircraft.
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: oboe on January 08, 2011, 09:56:41 AM
Look for any of us in the arenas - we'll try to cover ya, get you some kills and get you home in one piece.
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: R 105 on January 08, 2011, 11:31:38 AM
 A yoke may be a good idea for me too. I am a stoke victim and I am right handed and that is the side that is effected. I got an old Saitek ST-290 I had for 5 yrs. While I know foot paddles help a lot. I wonder if duel throttles are an advantage in a ME-110 or the P-38?
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: FLS on January 08, 2011, 11:44:55 AM
Dual throttles let you make a nice hammerhead and you can have some fun with spin control too. Usually the power of both engines is more useful than using half the power a little off of the airframe centerline.
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: Soulyss on January 08, 2011, 12:26:36 PM
A yoke may be a good idea for me too. I am a stoke victim and I am right handed and that is the side that is effected. I got an old Saitek ST-290 I had for 5 yrs. While I know foot paddles help a lot. I wonder if duel throttles are an advantage in a ME-110 or the P-38?

Dual throttle control can help a little, although generally not as much as most people think.  As FLS mentioned you can make some really clean hammerhead stalls, do donuts on the runway, and sometimes a little asymmetrical power can help roll rate a little at low speeds.  In most cases though the loss of power doesn't make up for any other perceived benefit. 

I use the CH throttle and have the three buttons on the front/top side of the throttle grip programed to select engine 1, both engines, engine 2 respectively and the most use they get is when I'm in the TA stooging around.
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: Ack-Ack on January 08, 2011, 03:20:21 PM
A yoke may be a good idea for me too. I am a stoke victim and I am right handed and that is the side that is effected. I got an old Saitek ST-290 I had for 5 yrs. While I know foot paddles help a lot. I wonder if duel throttles are an advantage in a ME-110 or the P-38?

The only real reason I found to be useful in using dual throttles in a P-38 is the immersion factor.

ack-ack
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: NormH3 on January 08, 2011, 03:27:20 PM
I agree on immersion...not to mention the cool ground steering (which has already to be mentioned) Now for the good part..went to the run and gun arena (read dueling) and helped another pilot out...got credit for 2 kills AND made it safely back to base. After over 110 sorties, it felt good  :banana:
Don't know that I quite understand the scoring system yet. There were 2 on his tail, but I only seemed to have a clear shot on one. :O
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: B4Buster on January 14, 2011, 01:00:54 PM
I'm in the market for a new joystick. Really tempted to pick up a yoke. Is there a dual throttle piece of hardware you can buy? That's definitely something I don't want to give up.
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: NormH3 on January 14, 2011, 01:38:34 PM
I'm in the market for a new joystick. Really tempted to pick up a yoke. Is there a dual throttle piece of hardware you can buy? That's definitely something I don't want to give up.

Saitek has a throttle quadrant . I picked up 2 new ones on ebay for a combined total of about $77. It will give me 6 levers, but I havent added them to the sim just yet. CH makes one with 6 levers, but I think they cost at least $120
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: B4Buster on January 14, 2011, 02:43:39 PM
Awesome! I apologize for the question then. Not trying to beat a dead horse. Wasn't sure what you meant by throttle quadrant earlier in the thread. Thanks for the info. :salute
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: NormH3 on January 14, 2011, 03:29:49 PM
No problem.
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: Cynic on January 14, 2011, 03:46:07 PM
I haven't played the game in years, but I see no reason to switch, except for reasons of comfort of gameplay.
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: Dichotomy on January 14, 2011, 03:49:14 PM
Just remember the P38, to me anyway, is one of the tougher planes in this game to get marginally decent in much less good.  Ack is a good 38 driver as are most of the Sapp guys.  If you can talk a couple of them into going to the TA or the DA and give you some pointers it will seriously ramp up your learning curve.

Best of luck to you in that thing  :aok
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: NormH3 on January 16, 2011, 07:21:06 AM
A yoke may be a good idea for me too. I am a stoke victim and I am right handed and that is the side that is effected. I got an old Saitek ST-290 I had for 5 yrs. While I know foot paddles help a lot. I wonder if duel throttles are an advantage in a ME-110 or the P-38?

Ive been using my yoke for all aircraft for the past 2 weeks now. Although I am far from a hot stick (although my aircraft becomes one as it pluments to the earth) I'm finding that it is fairly comfortable and responsive. Doing some low level flying with the 51B and Spit MK IX, it seems to work really well.
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: clerick on January 16, 2011, 07:26:50 AM
welcome the the cheapest addiction... Free 38's!  :aok
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: R 105 on January 17, 2011, 10:00:37 AM
Thank you all for the information about duel throttles. <S>
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: JUGgler on January 17, 2011, 11:00:24 AM
My concern is your obvious lack of self confidence making you choose 2 engines "just in case"  :)








Just kidding, use whatever you like and welcome  :salute


JUGgler
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: Soulyss on January 17, 2011, 11:32:04 AM
My concern is your obvious lack of self confidence making you choose 2 engines "just in case"  :)
Just kidding, use whatever you like and welcome  :salute

JUGgler

When I'm flying the 38 I call it planning for the inevitable. :)
Title: Re: P-38 Drivers..just curious
Post by: M0nkey_Man on January 17, 2011, 03:26:38 PM
When I'm flying the 38 I call it planning for the inevitable. :)
:aok